800 calories a day !!!!!!!

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Granny2b
Granny2b Posts: 91
in Health and Weight Loss
To my absolute horror a friend of mine says she has been on a diet of 800 calories a day. To me this is starvation. I have tried to talk to her about this but she is so adement to stick to this silly ( and i think so risky to her health) diet !
I was wondering if you could all post a reply to try and help my friend see that this is not the way to go if she is trying to lose some weight. I will show her all the posts when she is up next. Any advice would be so appreciated.

Pamela xxxx:flowerforyou:

Replies

  • Michellerw1
    Michellerw1 Posts: 367
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    It is amazing how alot of people will simply lower their calories to virtually NONE instead of realizing that if you burn alot of calories exercising you barely have to cut down calories and simply make smarter food choices.

    There is a before and after pic thread floating around here, show her that and how all of these amazing people lost 1-2 pounds a week to make permanant changes to their health and weight!
  • DwightJenkins
    DwightJenkins Posts: 58 Member
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    I've lost over 200 pounds in the last couple of years, so I know a little about starving yourself. It's NOT the way to go!! You will lose some weight yes, but mostly muscle mass. You're body will actually start saving the fat because it's in starvation mode. My advice is log on to this site, follow the advice for a few weeks, and stick to the recommended calories. You'll feel better, lose fat quicker, and be healthier.
  • kristinlough
    kristinlough Posts: 828 Member
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    If you search the community for "starvation" I just read a couple articles that were posted here today. But please ask your friend to eat more. Most women need 1700 ish calories to maintain a healthy weight, and so eating 1200 is already a 500 a day deficit. She's eating away at muscle, which from at least once source I read (somewhere) could include things like her heart. I guess that brings new meaning to the phrase "eat your heart out," doesn't it?

    Good luck!!
  • gabi_ele
    gabi_ele Posts: 460 Member
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    I think if you show her all the success stories on here that might help or the post by Banks about eating 700 calories a day and not losing, but in the end ,she is the one who has to make the final decision. There are lost of misconseptions about weight loss and it has been drilled into our head for such a long time that calories in calories out = weightloss.
    I was just getting ready to post about me upping my calories from losing 2 pounds a week to 1 pound a week. I was doing great, losing 2 or even sometimes a little more per week, feeling good, eating right . So after losing around 20 pounds it said I should update my goals and I did. Since then I have less energy, feel tired a lot more and more often then not I'm still hungry. I have a long way to go and I have been here bevore. My mind tells me just lower your calories a bit more, exercise harder and you will lose again, but my heart tells me this is NOT a diet, you have to feel happy along the way and if your body tells you it's not enough maybe I should listen to it. I have lost hundreds of pounds, to gain all back, mess up my metabolism and jo jo myself into the danger range. It's time to stop!
    Ok I'll put away the soapbox and get myself some chickenbreast with some stir fry veggies
  • TonyaR
    TonyaR Posts: 78 Member
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    Might check the Dr. Oz website he just had 2 ladies on his show that dropped down to like 700 and 900 calories!
  • nursevee
    nursevee Posts: 344 Member
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    Everyone has made some amazing points. She doesn't need to drop that low to lose weight. In the end her body will slow that burn and start packing away the "fuel." As everyone else has suggested, she would be far better making smarter choices, eating lots of fresh fruit & veg and sticking with a calorie intake of between 1200-1500 minimum to lose a regular amount of weight and observing a consistent exercise routine. Tell her that not only does she risk her body going into starvation mode but she also could quite possibly start to experience constant lethargy, dehydration, nutritional deficits.
  • livingnlove
    livingnlove Posts: 49
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    I think part of it depends on WHAT you're eating. I've noticed that when I eat lots of veggies and some fruit and protein, I end up around 800-900 and am very full. I forced myself for awhile to eat all the calories by adding higher fat stuff and making myself eat when I was full and gained a couple pounds. I will not do that anymore. I think a person needs to listen to what their body needs and not overeat just for the calorie count.
  • trixiemuffin
    trixiemuffin Posts: 1
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    I've done 500 cal diets in the past. Mainly because I had eating issues. It may work short-term, but it kills your metabolism and makes you skinny-fat. As soon as she starts eating normal again or has a binge, her weight will go up and pretty fast.

    I don't get why people can't eat (healthy) low-cal and workout. God forbid you have to get off your butt to lose weight. People are always looking for the easy way out.
  • FitnessChefJime
    FitnessChefJime Posts: 174 Member
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    I've lost over 200 pounds in the last couple of years, so I know a little about starving yourself. It's NOT the way to go!! You will lose some weight yes, but mostly muscle mass. You're body will actually start saving the fat because it's in starvation mode. My advice is log on to this site, follow the advice for a few weeks, and stick to the recommended calories. You'll feel better, lose fat quicker, and be healthier.

    Awesome Dwight congrats on your success!!

    And no way is 800 cal a good idea.. I am on 1800 and sometimes i feel like is that enough? Although I workout 15+ times a week
  • lcheney89
    lcheney89 Posts: 10
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    This is absolutely unhealthy. Anything under 1200 calories in considered putting your body in starvation. At some point her body will go into starvation mode and start storing the extra fat because it thinks that it need to because of the lack of food. Her body will start to lose muscle mass as well, as the body turns to muscle for nutrients.
  • lcheney89
    lcheney89 Posts: 10
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    Also, I forgot to mention, your metabolism will shut down and you won't be burning any calories. You'll become a mass of fat with no muscle tone, weakness, and a ton of lethargy! I'm currently a senior majoring in exercise physiology and this was highly stressed in class as a big DON'T!
  • Granny2b
    Granny2b Posts: 91
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    Thanks for all your advice i will pass it on to my friend.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
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    I eat 1500-2000 calories most days depending on exercise. I've lost 73 pounds since September 8, 2009. As they say, the proof is in the puddin'. :wink:
  • Will_B_Healthy
    Will_B_Healthy Posts: 4
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    Although this thread and site offer excellent tips and plans, it comes down to the individual and the choices made that lead to the outcome - successful or otherwise.

    There are some basics though.

    Nutritional education is fundamental; seek out a nutrition specialist who can help customize a plan that is both healthy and successful when tailored to the individual. Be discriminating in this choice as some of these "professionals" are anything but. Your doctor and trusted friends can help you narrow the field.

    Another fundamental is to work with a friend; we lack the objectivity to make good choices and don't always see the dangers as clearly while we are in the trenches fighting the battle.

    The third fundamental is very much a subjective element: some call it passion, others commitment, others say it is focus -- regardless of the label it is an element centered within, something not solely dependent upon the brain. How you respond to the occasional plateau or even slight weight gain is more revealing than how you react to weight loss.

    I will step down from my soapbox and simply wish you and your friend the best.
  • kspeach
    kspeach Posts: 179 Member
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    My doctor approved me for 1000 (generally, for my first month, I was at around 1350 plus exercise calories) calories a day, but I moved it down to 1200 calories/day for my MFP goal. That should put me at 2.5 to 3 pounds per week of loss. If I am able to do 1000 calories, that's great! But if I stick to 1200, that's fine too, as I'm trying not to lose TOO fast, so that it will STAY off! :)

    What it really does for me, by having the calories lower, is make me sure to exercise those calories off! :)

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